Ticket guide for printers



July 30, 1963 c. E- ADLER ETAL TICKET GUIDE FOR PRINTERS 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Jan. 26. 1960 INVENTORS CLARENCE E. ADLER WALTER G. MORING, JR.

ATTORNEYS July 30, 1963 c. E. ADLER ETAL TICKET GUIDE FOR PRINTERS 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Jan. 26, 1960 INVENTORS CLARENCE E. ADLER WALTER G. MORING, JR.

ATTORNEYS 3,0?9314 TICKET GUIDE FUR PRINTERS Clarence E. Adler and Walter G. Moring, Jr., Toledo, Ohio, assignors to Toledo Scale Corporation, Toledo, Ohio, a corporation of Ohio Filed Jan. 26, 1969, Ser. No. 4,706 7 Claims. (Cl. 101-407) This invention relates to printers, and in particular to a guide for guiding an element, such as a ticket, to be printed into a printer.

Printers of the industrial type disclosed in copending US. application Serial No. 693,975 filed November .1, 1957 and now Patent No. 2,922,361 issued January 26, 1960 have slotted tables upon which tickets to be printed are placed. Mechanism, such as a roller, for pressing a ticket against printing type is located below the table and printing members which carry the type are located in a printing station enclosed by a housing above the table, the roller running in the slot to press the ticket against an inked ribbon and the ribbon in turn against the face of the type.

The feeding of tickets into the interior of the housing is complicated by the widely varied demands of the users of industrial printers. Nearly all of the users have relatively strict requirements of accuracy :for the feeding of tickets so that data printed by the printers registers properly in the spaces provided for such data on the tickets.

Some users print the same data, such as the weight of an object, on the same ticket in more than one place.

Other users print various data, such as the net and gross weights of an object or the net, tare and gross weights of an object, on the same ticket. This means that each of such tickets must be advanced at least twice into accurate register with the printing station.

Many users use tickets of various widths and lengths which complicates the feeding of such tickets into accurately located positions in the interior of the printer, particularly when each of the tickets must be advanced several times into accurate register with the printing station. Long, thin tickets, for example, have been found to be particularly difficult to guide into accurate register with the printing station. Nearly all of the users demand high speed printing and yet want ticket guides which are of low cost and of relatively simple construction.

It is, accordingly, the cardinal object of this invention to provide a guide for locating a finger insertable element to be printed in a printing station inside the housing of a printer, which guide will accommodate elements of various sizes.

Another object of the invention is to facilitate the printing of long, thin tickets.

A further object is to provide a guide for locating a finger insertable element to :be printed in a printing station inside the housing of a printer, which guide is easily adjustable to facilitate aligning elements with the printing station.

Still another object is to provide means of relatively simple construction for guiding a finger insertable imprint receiving element from an accessible location into accurate register with a printing station located within the housing of a printer.

An additional object is to provide means of relatively simple construction for guiding an imprint receiving element into accurate registries with a printing station for multiple position printing on the element.

Another object is to provide a ticket guide which will satisfy at least most of the demands relating to ticket feeding of the foregoing users of industrial printers.

Other objects and advantages will be apparent from the means Patented July 30, 1963 following description in which reference is had to the accompanying drawings.

According to the invention, a ticket guide is provided which includes a pair of spaced guide members that extends from an accessible location into the interior of a printer and that defines a path for finger insertable tickets to be printed. The guide members are adjustable for handling tickets of various widths, cooperate with a stop which is adjustably positioned for handling tickets of various lengths and are both movable transversely to such path for aligning tickets with a printing station. The stop stops an inserted ticket in suitable aligmnent with the printing station.

The ticket guide features relatively simple mechanism for indexing the guide selectively in two or more positions to locate tickets in the printing station for multiple position printing on the tickets. For example, should one wish to print the net and gross weights of an object or the net, tare and gross weights of an object, the ticket guide is moved from a first index position to a second or from a first index .position to a second and then to a third, re spectively, to advance the ticket into accurate registries with the printing station. The ticket guide facilitates high speed printing, is rugged, of low cost, easy to adjust for accommodating tickets of various sizes and easy to adjust for aligning tickets with the printing station so that data printed by the printer registers properly in the spaces provided for such data on the tickets.

A preferred form of the ticket guide is illustrated in the accompanying drawings:

FIG. I is a perspective view of a weighing scale dial mechanism showing the location of an industrial printer embodying the ticket guide of the invention as it is mounted on a weighing scale;

FIG. II is an enlarged perspective view of the ticket guide and the printer ticket table to which it is attached which are illustrated in 'FIG. 1; and

FIG. III is an enlarged exploded View of the right hand end of the ticket guide as viewed in FIG. 11 showing indexing means for the ticket guide.

These specific figures and the accompanying description are intended merely to illustrate the invention and not to limit its scope.

For the purpose of illustration, the printer is shown in connection with an ordinary dial type weighing scale. Such a scale comprises a dial housing 1 that contains automatic load counterbalancing and indicating mechanism which includes an indicator 2 that is rotated through increments of angle which are proportional to increments of Weight applied to the scale and that indicates such weights on a stationary indicia-bearing chart 3. The dial housing 1 is mounted on the top of a scale column 4 of which only the top portion is shown in FIG. I. Mechanical chart reading mechanism which is shown and described in US. application Serial No. 643,708 filed March 4, 1957 is located within the dial housing 1 and is connected to a printer which is contained within its-housing 5 and case 6 and operated according to the scale readings. The printer may be operated by any of the usual means for setting up printing members, such as type wheels or sectors, or by hand. The mechanism within the printer housing 5 and case 6 is shown and described in detail in the hereinbefore referred to US. application Serial No. 693,975.

The type carrying printing members are located within the case 6 and define an interior printing station at the bottom of the case 6, the printing station being located from positions, exterior of the case 6 by means of index marks 7 and 8 on the case, index mark 7 indicating the width of the matter that may be printed and index mark 8 indicating the height of the matter that is printed. A ticket or other element 9 is placed in a narrow opening or aces,

slot 1%} in register with the printing station and between the bottom of the case 6 and the top of a table 11 atop the housing which supports the ticket to receive an imprint in juxtaposition with the type bearing printing members in the printing station, the table being in the form ofa ledge extending from the printing station. A roller, not shown, for pressing tickets against the printing type is located within the housing 5 below the table ii and the printing type are located in the case 6 above the table, the roller running back and forth in a slot 12 (FIG. ii) in the table to press tickets against an inked ribbon and the ribbon in turn against the face of the type.

The :feeding of the ticket 9 into the interior of the case 6 is complicated by the widely varied demands of the users of industrial printers. Many users have relatively strict requirements of accuracy for the feeding of the tickets so that data printed by the printers registers properly in the spaces provided for such data. The sizes of the tickets vary from user to user and a single user may use tickets of several sizes. Some users print the same weight data on the same ticket in more than one place. Other users print weight data uch as net and gross weights or net, tare and gross weights on the same ticket. Many users have hard to handle tickets such as long, thin tickets. Nearly all of the users demand high speed printing and yet want ticket guides which are of low cost and of relatively simple construction. In order to satisfy the toregoing demands relating to ticket feeding of the users of industrial printers, the ticket guide- 13 of the invention is provided for correctly and easily locating the ticket 9 to be printed in the printing station.

The ticket guide 13 includes a pair of spaced guide members 14 each made from a single strip of material formed with a recumbent L-shaped, relatively short front section 15 and a oh annel sh-aped, relatively iong back section 16. The guide members 14- are supported by the ticket table ll and extend from an accessible location exterior of the housing 6 through the slot to into the interior of the housing and define a path for the ticket 9 edge portions of which are received in the channel-shaped sections 16 of the guide members 14 for guidance to the printing station.

A pair of spaced blocks 1'7 is mounted from the under side of the table 11 at the outer end thereof and each is provided with a horizontal opening 18 (FIG. III) which receives for sliding action a guide rod 19 which is thus adjacent the outer end of the table 11 and mounted to be transversely movable relative to the ticket path defined by the spaced guide members 14. Each of the front sections 15 of the guide members it is secured to an apertured block 26 which is received for sliding action for the purpose of adjustment by the guide rod 19, set screws 21 holding the blocks 2t} and the guide members 14 secured thereto in adjusted positions. Hence, the guide rod 19 and the guide members 14 are movable back and forth, as indicated by the double ended arrow in FIG. H, as one.

Movement of the guide rod 19 to the left, as viewed in FIG. II, is limited by engagement of a retaining ring or stop 22 carried in a circumferential groove 23 in the right hand end of the guide rod with the right hand block or abutment 17. This is the position of the guide rod 19 which is shown in FIG. II. In such position, a circumferential index groove 24 in the left hand end of the guide rod 19 points to the legend Gross on the table 11 indicated by the numeral 2S. Movement of the guide rod 19 to the right, as viewed in FIG. II is limited by engagemerit of a retaining ring or stop 25 carried either in a circumferential groove 27 or in an adjacent and similar groove 28 each on the other side of the block 17 relative to the other one of the retaining rings or stops 22. When the stop 26 is in the groove 27 as shown in FIG. II and the guide rod 19 is moved to the right until the stop 26 contacts the block 17, the index groove 24 points to the legend Net on the table ill indicated by the numeral 29. When the stop 26 is in its alternative position in the groove 28 and the guide rod 19 is moved to the right until the stop 25 contacts the block 1'7, the index groove 24- points to the legend Tare on the table ll indicated by the numeral 38. A. circumferential detent groove 31 is formed in the guide rod 194 midway between the grooves 23 and 27. Movement of the guide rod 19 in either direction as limited by stop 22 in groove 23 or by stop 26 in groove 27 causes a ball 32, which is urged by means of a coil 33 toward the guide rod 19, to de-tent into the detent groove 31 midway between such stops, the ball 32 and the coil 33 being so received in an opening 34 in the right hand block 17 that the ball is continuously urged against the guide rod 19. When the ball 32 is received in the detent groove 31, the index groove 24 points to the legend Tare on the table 11 indicated by the numeral 3i).

The ticket guide 13 is adjusted to accommodate a ticket 9 of a particular size and to align such ticket with the printing station by first aligning the index groove 24 on the guide rod .19 with the legend Gross (25). Then the set screws 21 are loosened and the left hand guide member M, as viewed in FIG. 11, is moved to the left to the limit of its possible travel. This moves such guide member 14 out from underneath the case 6 into the open exposing to view a ticket stop 35 (FIG. III) which is clamped for sliding action to accommodate tickets of various lengths on the such guide member 14, the ticket stop 35 being held by friction in adjusted position. A ticket 9 is inserted until it contacts the ticket stop 35 which then is moved until the space provided for the gross weight print on the ticket is aligned with the index mark 7 on the front of the case 6, the index mark 7 indicating the width of the matter .to be printed. In o oration, the ticket stop 35 stops an inserted ticket in suitable alignment with the printing station.

The left hand guide member 14, as viewed in FIG. II, and the ticket 9 therein then is moved to the right until the space provided for the gross weight print on the ticket is aligned with the index mark 8 on the end of the case 5, the index mark 8 indicating the height of the matter to be printed. The guide members set screw 21 is tightened to hold the adjusted position. The foregoing adjustments are more or less in the nature of rough adjustments, further adjustments being made by trial and error after trial prints on several tickets are made. The other one of the guide members 14 then is moved along the guide rod 19 to adjust the space between the guide members 14 to the Width of the ticket allowing slight clearance for easy insertion. The guide members set screw 21 is tightened to hold the adjusted position. Hence, the position of the ticket stop 35 determines the length of the tickets that can be handled and the spacing between the guide members 14 determines the width of the tickets that can be handled, the guide members 14- being movable transversely to the ticket path defined by the guide members and relative to the guide rod 19 for ali ning a ticket Wit-h the printing station.

For two position printing, the retaining ring or stop is located in groove 28. The detent ball 32 and coil 33 are not needed for two position pn'nting, the ball 32 being received in groove 31 when stop 26 in groove 28 contacts the block or abutment 17. In operation, with the retaining ring or stop 26 in groove 23 contacting the block or abutment 17, i.e., with the index groove 24 pointing to Tare ($6), the ticket is inserted in the ticket guide 13 until it is stopped by the ticket stop 35 and a tare weight print is made. Movement of the guide rod 19 until retaining ring or stop 22 contacts the block 17 aligns the index groove 24 with Gross (25) to provide a second printing position and a gross weight print is made. Hence, moving the guide from stop to stop provides two printing positions for the ticket in the printing stat on, the stops providing an indexing means defining a plurality of selective posiitons for the guide rod. The finger insertion of the ticket facilitates high speed printsesame ing and permits the guide to be of simple and low cost construction.

For one position printing, with the retaining ring or stop 22 contacting the block 17, i.e., with the index groove 24 pointing to Gross (25), the ticket is inserted in the ticket guide 1 3 until it contacts the ticket stop 35 and a gross weight print is made.

For three position printing, the retaining ring or stop 26 is located in groove 2'). In operation, moving the ticket guide 13 from stop 22 to stop 26 provides two positions for the ticket in the printing station, the ball 32 detenting into groove 31 midway between such stops to provide a third position for the ticket in the printing station. With stop 22 contacting the abutment 17 the index groove 24 points to Gross (25), with stop 26 in groove 27 contacting the abutment 17 the index groove 24 points to Net (29), and with the detent ball 32 received in the groove 31 the index groove 24 points to Tare (3h).

The embodiment of the invention described in connection with the drawings is to be regarded as illustrative only since the invention is susceptible to variation, modification and change within the spirit and scope of the appended claims.

Having described the invention, We claim:

1. In a printer having a housing enclosing a printing station, a slot in register with the printing station and a ledge extending therefrom, a guide for loading an element to be printed in the printing station comprising, in combination, a pair of spaced guide members on the ledge extending from an accessible location exterior of the housing through the slot into the interior of the housing and defining a path for the element, a guide rod adjacent the ledge mounted to be transversely movable relative to the path and extending transversely to the path, indexing means defining a plurality of selective positions for the guide rod, the guide members being attached to the guide rod, whereby movement of the guide rod into said plurality of positions locates the element in the printing station for multiple position printing on the element, and at least one of the guide members being adjustably attached to the guide rod for movement transverse .to the path for accommodating elements of various Widths, the space between the guide members being adjusted to the width of the particular element to be printed allowing slight clearance for easy insertion, and stop means for stopping an inserted element in suitable align ment with the printing station.

2. A guide according to claim 1 wherein both of the guide members are adjustably attached to the guide rod for movement transverse to the path to align an element to be printed with the printing station.

3. in a printer having a housing enclosing a printing station, a slot in register with the printing station and a ledge extending therefrom, a guide for loading an element to be printed in the printing station comprising, in combination, a pair of spaced guide members on the ledge extending trom an accessible location exterior of the housing through the slot into the interior of the housing and defining a path for the element, a guide rod adjacent the ledge mounted to be transversely movable relative to the path, and indexing means defining a plurality of selective positions for the guide rod, the guide members being attached to the guide rod whereby movement of the guide rod into such plurality of positions locates the element in the printing station for multiple position printing on the element.

4. A guide according to claim 3 wherein the indexing means includes a stationarily mounted abutment and a pair of stops carried by the guide red one on either side of the abutment for defining two positions for the guide rod.

5. A guide according to claim 3 wherein the indexing means includes stop means which define two positions for the guide rod.

6. A guide according to claim 4 wherein the indexing means further includes detent means located between the stops for defining at least one additional position for the guide rod.

7. A guide according to claim 5 wherein the indexing means further includes detent means located between the stop means for defining at least one additional position for the guide rod.

References Cited in the tile of this patent UNlTED STATES PATENTS 595,225 Wallwork Dec. 7, 1897 674,892 Taylor May 21, 1901 1,370,169 Turner Mar. 1, 1921 1,67G,683 Laird May 22, 1928 1,938,531 Ostrey Dec. 5, 1933 2,632,549 Rainey Mar. 24, 1953 2,922,361 Adler et a1. Jan. 26, 1960 

1. IN A PRINTER HAVING A HOUSING ENCLOSING A PRINTING STATION, A SLOT IN REGISTER WITH THE PRINTING STATION AND A LEDGE EXTENDING THEREFROM, A GUIDE FOR LOADING AN ELEMENT TO BE PRINTED IN THE PRINTING STATION COMPRISING, IN COMBINATION, A PAIR OF SPACED GUIDE MEMBERS ON THE LEDGE EXTENDING FROM AN ACCESSIBLE LOCATION EXTERIOR OF THE HOUSING THROUGH THE SLOT INTO THE INTERIOR OF THE HOUSING AND DEFINING A PATH FOR THE ELEMENT, A GUIDE ROD ADJACENT THE LEDGE MOUNTED TO BE TRANSVERSELY MOVABLE RELATIVE TO THE PATH AND EXTENDING TRANSVERSELY TO THE PATH, INDEXING MEANS DEFINING A PLURALITY OF SELECTIVE POSITIONS FOR THE GUIDE ROD, THE GUIDE MEMBERS BEING ATTACHED TO THE GUIDE ROD, WHEREBY MOVEMENT OF THE GUIDE ROD INTO SAID PLURALITY OF POSITIONS LOCATES THE ELEMENT IN THE PRINTING STATION FOR MULTIPLE POSITION PRINTING ON THE ELEMENT, AND AT LEAST ONE OF GUIDE MEMBERS BEING ADJUSTABLY ATTACHED TO THE GUIDE MEMBERS BEING VERSE TO THE PATH FOR ACCOMMODATING ELEMENTS OF VARIOUS WIDTHS, THE SPACE BETWEEN THE GUIDE MEMBERS BEING ADJUSTED TO THE WIDTH OF THE PARTICULAR ELEMENT TO BE PRINTED ALLOWING SLIGHT CLEARANCE FOR EASY INSERTION, AND STOP MEANS FOR STOPPING AN INSERTED ELEMENT IN SUITABLE ALIGNMENT WITH THE PRINTING STATION. 